Ensuring long term sustainability in networked microgrids through intelligent load management and priority-based power transfer scheme

Abstract

The intermittency of renewable energy sources (RES) and dynamic variation of loads may pose threat to the long-term operation of a stand-alone microgrid with critical loads. A local inverter control can only restore the voltage and frequency to normal during off-peak hours or sufficient generation conditions. Thus, this paper proposes a two-level control mechanism to enhance the energy management capability in a Networked Microgrid (NMG) during both peak and off-peak hours (sufficient and deficit generation conditions). The proposed intelligent load management scheme and a novel priority-based power transfer strategy coordinate with a local inverter control mechanism to provide long-term solutions in maintaining a sustainable environment. The intelligent load management scheme optimally manages the significant power-consuming non-critical loads and facilitate power transfer through interlinking converter (ILC). The ILC control strategy is designed with a novel Priority-based Power Transfer (PPT) scheme to avoid ambiguity among microgrids participating for power transfer and ensure uninterrupted power supply to its critical loads. The analysis of proposed control mechanism are extensively carried out considering several load dynamics. Further, the effectiveness of the proposed approach is demonstrated by the implementation of real-time validation using Hardware in Loop (HIL).